The South Passage

 It’s officially come to the end of 2024. Happy December, happy New Year and welcome January 2025! 

My fifteenth blogpost and last one for the year, it’s difficult to describe how much I’ve truly enjoyed writing this year and banging out these blogposts. I’ve fallen in love with seeing my travel diary and notes come to life since originally documenting my travels in 2016 and even more so from 2018 when I left Australia indefinitely. It’s a great passion of mine and I’m so excited to continue my journey, share more travel stories and hopefully inspire others, I especially cannot wait to create more informative posts! 

If you’re following on from my last post “Best Life Adventures,” we had just set up camp at Amity Point in North Stradbroke Island. We made our way to Amity Point tavern for a well deserved feed and it was great getting to know everyone in the group more on dry land. When it got to seven thirty, we were all tired in the best way possible, ready for some sleep and the next day ahead. When I put my head down on my bed that night, my whole world was swaying and rocking, I still felt like I was on the ocean. 

Waking up the next morning, I could feel my muscles a bit stiff and sore from kayaking twenty- three kilometres the day before but after getting up, stretching and walking… I felt brand new. The camp site was incredibly gorgeous in the morning, the weather was nothing like we’d had the day before as the sky and water were beautiful and blue. Chilling about around camp, chatting, laughing with everyone, trying to dry our wet clothes as we ate a delicious breakfast, was the perfect morning. By the time we knew it, it was already time to pack up our tents, kayaks and get back out on the water. Today was the day we crossed the South Passage. This is a channel between North Stradbroke Island and Moreton Island, leading out into the Coral and Tasman Sea. Roughly 230 people have kayaked across this passage so it was both exhilarating and a little nerve wracking to think we were about to do this. Piece of cake! How hard would it be? 

Getting back out on the water was glorious and I had to remind myself about the technique that Craig and Ben taught us when we first started to get my body back into the rhythm again. Activate and twist from my core, loose hands and fingers around our paddles, make sure to breathe, have fun! We kayaked along the shore of North Stradbroke Island and the views were simply gorgeous. Eventually coming into the start of the South Passage, our kayaks rolled over the forming waves, it was so fun to feel myself rock with up and down. Trying to stay away from the breaking waves, we got to a point where we had to face them and this was something I’d never done before, paddling became a little bit more challenging as our objective was not to catch a wave and it required a lot of concentration to follow Craig who was leading the pack.

Deejay, starting to become sea sick from the constant movement of the choppy waves, found it hard to continue paddling and as he was sick, we capsized right in the middle of the passage. The group split up as Ben took the rest and Craig stayed back to help us get back into the kayak. The waves constantly hitting us, it was difficult, after helping Craig flip the kayak and getting back in, Deejay was now at the point of severe sea sickness and struggled to function amongst all the chaos, how he stayed with it and powered on, was unreal. Craig and I were pumping water out of the kayak so that we could seal ourselves back in, wrestling with the breaking waves and white wash continually smashing into the sides of our kayaks. I got into the back of the kayak to steer using the rudder and peddles and slowly we made our way through the passage. We ended up catching a wave and capsized again, it couldn’t be helped. The swell and tide was the most craziest conditions I’d ever kayaked in. After flipping the kayak back over, pumping water out and getting back in a second time and rescuing our floating dry bag, we finally escaped the breaking waves and made it to the nearest beach about thirty minutes later- finally on Moreton Island. We did it. We never felt so happy to hit land and rest for a few minutes whilst we checked the kayak and got ready to go again. 

We got back in our kayak, made it to Gutter Bar on Moreton Island and met up with the other group an hour and a half later with sea sickness tablets and ginger ale ready for us. What an adventure that had been, sixteen kilometres kayaked that day. The second half of our trip to our second campsite was so calm in comparison, not a wave in sight as we calmly paddled along the water watching out for sting rays, turtles and a whole heap of fish. It was low tide by the time we got to our second campsite. We ditched our kayaks for the time being on the shore and indulged in a well needed and tasty lunch before setting up our tents for the second night. After a few hours, we’d walked all the kayaks up to our camp, set up our cute and comfy communal area for our camp, set up the tents and even got a great demonstration by Atlas showing us how to use the amazing throne of a toilet for the night. 

My mum, Deejay and I went for walk out to the beach for a quick swim which was so much fun, we spotted a whole heap of sting rays and ran back to camp in the rain feeling refreshed after such a crazy day. After playing around and laughing with Atlas, he showed me his secret hide out spot up one of the sand dunes on our camp site. It was stunning! After about ten minutes of exploring and realising there were more sand dunes, the rest of the group made their way up to meet us, Atlas taking the lead, sprinting up the steep slope to the top. We all made it to the top and witnessed the most extraordinary sunset and my favourite view of 2024. We saw Brisbane from the top of the sand dune and Ben pointed over the ocean to where we started in Cleveland, North Stradbroke Island, Fiona and Deejays “trenches” - the South Passage to where we stood at that very moment. 

The following day, we packed up our entire camp site and kayaks for the last time and hit the water. Staying close to the shore the entire way, we spotted more sting rays, turtles, fish and shovel-nose guitar fish. The wind was in our favour as we got closer to Tangalooma, we were able to lift our paddles up and use them as sails, getting pushed along the crystal blue water for a good majority of the way. Thirteen kilometres that day, we saw the beach of Tangalooma and the ending in sight. It was a bittersweet feeling, I could have kept kayaking and exploring with this brilliant group of people, but I was also so excited for a shower. Fifty two kilometres over three days, we had done it! What an achievement. 

I can’t thank the team enough for all the banter, laughs, knowledge and support over the three days. How lucky to have been on one of the coolest expeditions ever surrounded by some truly genuine and determined people. A special mention to Craig for his impeccable skill in the South Passage. Not to mention… the food on this trip was absolutely amazing, even luxurious I’d like to say! For a camping expedition and wilderness experience, we were very looked after when it came to meals, snacks, tea and coffee. It really was our best life adventure. 

I hope you enjoyed this read and my last post for 2024! See you in 2025. Take care. Happy New Year. 

Talk soon, 

The Runaway Redhead 

Best Life Adventures

Happy December everyone! Welcome back to my blog for the last month of 2024. What a year it has been. For the first time in over six years, I’m back in Australia experiencing a wonderful and warm December, which I am loving! 

Ending the year on a high, I’m writing this blog in the present time as I’ve just come back from an exhilarating kayaking expedition over the weekend. Starting in Cleveland, Brisbane, we kayaked over to Peel Island, North Stradbroke Island through the South Passage and finally finishing on Moreton Island over three days and fifty two kilometres in total. Through lots of rain, sun, battling the tides, waves (and capsizing) all whilst spotting so many sting rays, fish, turtles, sharks, birds and koalas. Including, hiking up sand dunes and hanging out at the campsites, it is a weekend we will never forget. 

Thank you to the remarkable, inspiring, passionate and truly extraordinary athlete Ben Southall who is a great family friend and founder of Best Life Adventures. Ben is such awesome role model, leader and overall an incredibly genuine and kind hearted person. In everyday life and on his trips, he radiates the most happiest and positive energy so effortlessly. He’s a book of knowledge and is fantastic at what he does, I couldn’t speak more highly of him. His sidekick and beautiful son Atlas, an adventurous and curious soul, is extremely intelligent about all things a wildlife and outdoors and showed us the true relaxing style of kayaking. This trip wouldn’t have been the same without Ben’s other partner in crime, Craig, who is (in my opinion) a genius when it comes to kayaking, the ocean, the tides and the moon. His thirty plus years of experience showed from the beginning and throughout both the good and challenging times in our journey. His story telling of previous adventures, intelligence and skill impressed us all, not to mention, how helpful, supportive and caring he was. To the guide in training, Ellen, for her empathy, kindness, resilience and strength. She was a comforting and friendly presence for us all on the trip and I feel so grateful to have shared the expedition with her! 

With lots to unpack, here’s part one of: Best Life Adventures! 

We started early at four o’clock on Saturday morning as we got our last bits ready and packed. We grabbed breakfast and piled into the car with Ben and Atlas for a small road trip to Cleveland, Brisbane. Once we arrived at our meeting point, we met the other people in our group and from there, it was go, go, go… that’s when it all became real. Sorting through all our clothes, food and camping gear for the next three days, we fit everything into seven, double kayaks. It was surreal to think we were about to kayak all of our belongings and our homes fifty kilometres around Moreton Bay. We got a safety lesson from Ben and Craig, spoke about the day ahead and got ourselves comfortable in our kayaks. It was my first time in a double kayak with spray decks, using a rudder and foot pedals for steering. This was going to be interesting. 

Deejay started in the back first using the foot pedals to steer as well as kayak. My job was simply to kayak. Off we went leaving at eight thirty in the morning. It took a while to get into a comfortable rhythm and a lot of us spent the first part bumping into each other as we chatted from across our kayaks. It was so much fun. We didn’t stay dry for long and got hit early with a hard downpour of rain, there was something so comforting about paddling in the rain, the air was warm, so the rain cooled me down instantly but I also loved that fact that I couldn’t see anything around me besides the people I was with… it felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. From then on the weather from clear to rain, clear to rain all day. After the first eleven kilometres, we stopped at Peel Island, Teerk Roo Ra National Park for lunch and pulling up on the beach felt so relieving to get up, stretch and jump up the water. 

From Peel Island we kayaked another thirteen kilometres to Amity Point on North Stradbroke Island. We had a stunning landscape around us and even passed some oyster farms on our way. This second half became a bit of a mental challenge. When all you wanted to do was stop paddling and rest, you were tired, sore (and in my case, busting to pee) it was mind over matter. Thanks to all the encouraging and positive attitudes, and for the fact my mum and her kayaking partner lightened up the trip with some interval training and sprints, it powered everyone on to get to our final destination for the day! Amity Point Campground. Twenty four kilometres we’d kayaked- on the first day! 

After getting our kayaks up on the beach, we unloaded and started to set up our tents for the night. The campsite was gorgeous and we had some prime spots with views of the beach, jetty and wilderness. Deejay and I explored around on the jetty seeing plenty of sting rays, crabs, fish and shovelnose guitarfish. After having a swim and getting ready, our group headed to the Amity tavern for dinner that evening during sunset, chatting to Santa and elves via telephone on the way and spotting the cutest koalas in the trees! What a way to end the first day. 

Stay tuned for part two! 

Thanks so much for reading and I hope you’ve enjoyed this blog. If you have read and enjoyed this one or any of my other posts, I’d appreciate it if you left a comment below! I’d love to make this a blog a place for like minded people to be able to relate and share travel stories, thoughts and experiences with each other. If you have any other questions, feel free to check out my instagram, the_runawayredhead and send me a DM! 

Talk soon, 

The Runaway Redhead